Super Guest Star Alert! Someone is making an appearance at Karma's Backbone this chapter and I bet you can't guess who it is? My beta had to ask me but I have faith that you all will know. I was super amazed at all my readers who picked out Thor! I think this character ranks up there with Thor and I hope you all can figure it out! Oh yeah, I want to thank my super awesome beta, treewitch703 and all my lovely readers out there in internet land! Love you all!
The drive back to Karma's Backbone was a quiet one. Auggie reached over and grabbed my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "You need to be strong for them, B. I know your kids love that man almost as much as they love you," Auggie said as she pulled into the parking space. She turned and looked at me with compassionate eyes. "You are going to go in there and tell your kids one of the most devastating things you will ever have to tell them. I can't have you breaking down. We are all here to help you, B. That is what Essie and I do best; we help those in need."
I wiped the tears from my eyes. I may not have known Auggie all that long but I like to think of her as my friend. Funny how all the supernatural creatures I have met recently treated me better than even my own flesh and blood family had. My mother never cared if I was there or not. She crawled into a bottle of whiskey after my father left her. I was pretty much left to my own devices, which is never good. She would clean herself up long enough to get children's services off her back and then sure as the night is dark, she would be back dating Jack Daniels or Jim Beam. I just tried to survive long enough to get away. That's how I got involved with werewolves.
Howl was charming at first. He offered me a job working for him. Of course he promised the moon and stars like he did to all his new employees. I was sixteen years old and had just dropped out of high school when I first met Howl. Howl didn't give a hill of beans about the legal age for serving and consuming alcohol, all he cared about was if they were young and stupid. I was the perfect candidate at the time and I sure needed the money since I was living in my beat up old car. The lifestyle was even tempting too; you know, a ride on the wild side every night of the week. It's strange how my perception of the supernatural has changed since having Andy and meeting Daddy Joe and Eric. I always thought they were all savage and brutal. I was so wrong.
Auggie put her arm around my shoulders and held me close as I cried. I wasn't just crying because of my loss, I was crying because I didn't deserve all this kindness. Auggie stroked my hair the same way I would comfort one of my kids. "Belinda, you deserve all the good things that have come your way recently. You are the first human I can truly call a friend. I haven't been able to say that for centuries. It's nice to have a friend," Auggie whispered. She just let me get my tears out of the way before we got out of the car. She even helped me to clean up so I didn't look so bad. Auggie took my hand and walked right into the store.
Carrie rolled her eyes at Auggie and discretely nodded in the direction of a small mob of women eying the prize that is Magni Frost. Some fiddled with their hair while others hiked up their boobs but the center of the group was a six foot tall man with long curly black hair. He looked like he belonged on the cover of one of those romance novels despite the fact that he was wearing jeans and a white dress shirt under a form fitting leather motorcycle jacket. He also had an otherness to him. He admired Mag's backside as the demigod was bent over the C.D. rack loading a bunch of Sinatra C.D's. Little did this strange man know or care that the goblin king was also licking his lips. If I wasn't grieving so much, I would have enjoyed the humor in this situation.
Magni looked over his shoulder and down at the women and the man or whatever and smiled. He finished loading the C.D.s in the S section of the rack. He looked down at all his admirers. He kindly told the flock to leave and everyone except for Mr. Romance Cover Boy went on their way. He then turned to the strange man and politely told him that he was flattered but he didn't swing that way. The man huffed, turned on his heel and stomped off. I doubt that Mag has a nasty bone in his body.
"As soon as he comes out of the storeroom, that happens," Carrie said as she rolled her eyes again. "Jareth isn't much help. He keeps staring at that fairy and fantasizing. The other guy's been following Mag around since he entered the store. Stingy jerk didn't even tip me for his frozen mocha cappuccino."
"Jareth is supposed to be in charge since Essie is busy. He's lucky Essie hasn't seen all this or she would've iced him by now," Auggie said as she watched the disappointed face Jareth made when the fairy guy left the store. "Mag can't help that he has that effect on people. Jareth knows this. I better have a talk with him before Essie does but it'll have to wait for now. There are more pressing matters at hand."
"You've been crying," Carrie said as she looked at me with somber eyes. "I can smell your tears."
This only made me want to cry more. I promised Auggie that I would keep a cool head long enough to tell the kids. God, I didn't want to tell them but I had to. Not only was I worried about how Izzy would take it, but Andy had been very close to Daddy Joe. Daddy Joe taught him everything he knows about werewolves. He couldn't teach him how to be a werewolf but he gave Andy enough knowledge to understand who he is. Daddy Joe also taught him how to shoot a gun and gave him a positive male role model. That was something that I always felt was important.
"Essie will tell you guys later in the employee meeting, after I tell her. First I need Mag and then I need to have a little word with Jareth," Auggie tells Carrie.
Carrie reaches over her counter and takes my hand. "Whatever is happening right now, you know that you have friends here! Esmeralda and Augustine saved me from a bad situation. They gave me a job and a place to live when I never thought I would ever have those things. They have also given me so much more," Carrie said with wry smile. "I would so give you a hug right now but I've got a reputation to maintain. Every workplace needs a bored sarcastic shifter," Carrie snickered as she went about her business and took an elderly woman's coffee order.
Mag was still fending off the last of his admirers when he glanced my way. He was wearing one of his patented smiles but it had slowly dimmed. People attracted to men lusted after Mag, he couldn't help it but for me the lust had gone. I puzzled over this as I watched him move around the store; Mag was deliciously handsome but I realized I didn't see him in that light anymore. He came up to me and touched my cheek but I still couldn't tap into the feelings I'd had for him. Something had definitely changed between me and the demigod.
"My friend, you have lost someone dear," Mag said looking down at me with sad eyes. "I can't help but feel your pain."
The tears that I had been holding back, burst free. Mag engulfed me in his massive arms I'm pretty sure his admirers were giving me the evil eye but I didn't care. I realized then why I didn't lust over the giant anymore. Magni Frost had entered the friend zone and I can't lust over my friends. "Let me take you someplace more private," Mag then said as he kept his steps small enough for both Auggie and me to keep up. Mag kept his arm around me, shielding me from the eyes of the customers. He smelled oddly of the sky and the ocean but it was a soothing scent. He reached into his apron pocket and pulled out a tissue and passed it to me. I dabbed at my eyes with it. He sat me down on the ornately carved bench outside Esmeralda's office. Auggie sat so I was bracketed by supes. Mag and Auggie each had an arm around the damply sobbing human that was me. Auggie laid her head on my shoulder while Mag affectionately kissed my forehead. Auggie took my hand and gave it a squeeze while Mag drifted, lost in his thoughts. He rested his strong chin on my head while Auggie looked up at me with sad eyes.
"I can strengthen you with my powers but it will cost me if the other gods find out," Mag said. "Odin has forbidden us to interfere with the affairs of men. He did so after the reign of the Vikings. The missionaries did us a favor back then. They gave us a way out of humanity," Mag said as he still kept his cheek resting on the top of my head. "Odin does not forbid us from coming into this realm but he has forbidden us to use our magic to benefit man. That is what drove us back to Asgard in the first place. Humans are greedy little creatures who used us to shape their world."
"Mag, you don't mean to…," Auggie said as I felt Mag nod.
"Only enough to tell her children of their loss. My friend is having troubles finding her strength, I can give her some of mine. Just a small amount," Mag said as he removed his cheek from its resting place. He lifted my chin to meet his gaze. "You must promise me that you will never speak of this. Not ever," Mag said to me in a serious tone. The normally jolly giant didn't seem so jolly at the moment. Those strange blue rings glowed around his irises. He wasn't trying to glamour me, I wasn't even sure if he could and then I felt the hairs of my arms raise. Mag looked menacing for a moment and then sad. "Odin will take me away from this realm forever if he finds out. Mother would be devastated. As my friend you must promise never to breathe a word of this," Mag then said.
"I-I-I p-p-promise," I sobbed out and Mag kissed my forehead again. Auggie let go of my hand and just as she did, Mag grabbed it.
"I need you to hold my hand," Mag said softly. I looked up at that handsome face through the tears that blurred the lenses of my glasses. "I will be gentle," Mag then said, giving me a tentative version of his wondrous smile.
I held out my hand and Mag did the same. My whole hand was only slightly bigger than his palm as our hands touched. His fingers intertwined with mine just before I felt static electricity shoot up my arm. There were no flashing lights or lightning bolts, just a rolling sensation that seemed to wipe away my sorrows. One minute I felt like the world was against me and the next I felt like I could pick up a car. If this was only a small amount of Mag's godly powers, I wonder what it was like to get the whole shebang.
"Do you feel better now?" Mag asked as he brushed some stay curls away from my face. My vision seemed blurred at the moment and so I pulled the glasses off my nose. I could see with crystal clarity. For the first time in my life, my eyesight was perfect.
"It's only temporary," Mag reminded me. "Although I must say Belinda, you are an attractive woman without your glasses," Mag added and I blushed. I may not lust over Mag anymore but that didn't mean his compliments were meaningless.
Auggie found a pair of dummy glasses with a similar frame that I dreaded putting on but I had to if I didn't want Mag getting in trouble. Not just with the gods but I'm pretty sure his mother wouldn't be too happy with what he's done.
I stood up slightly and kissed his cheek. "Thank you," I whispered in his ear. Mag's face lifted with that gentle smile again.
"Your children have given my mother happiness so I gave you a small piece of my strength and my friendship. You are one of the most interesting mortals I have met in a long time. I understand now why Aunt Astir likes you so much," Mag said as he took my hand again but this time there was no magic involved, just a gentle squeeze.
"I need to speak with Mag," Auggie said.
"Last time I saw mother and the children, they were in the garden. It's just off the kitchen," Mag said as he held open the door that led to Esmeralda's apartment. "Be strong, my friend," Mag then said as he put a hand on my shoulder.
"We'll be in shortly. We've got to get the keys to Jareth's mini bus and call about a boat of some sorts," Auggie said as she looked up at Mag.
"I am thinking of something more appropriate to the region. Maybe a pirogue?" Mag said to Auggie and she nodded in agreement. "I understand he was a Cajun and loved the swamp. I think that would be appropriate," Mag then said. I was amazed at Mag's knowledge of the modern world or at least to him modern. I assumed he learned everything from his aunt and the other supes working at Karma's Backbone.
I reached up and patted his cheek. "I trust you'll make it right, my friend," I said and Mag lit that thousand watt smile of his.
"I will," he said as he bent down and kissed my cheek. "You must hurry before it wears off. My magic doesn't last long," he then whispered in my ear. I nodded as I entered Esmeralda oversized apartment.
The apartment was still a little overwhelming. Old Scandinavian furniture made for a woman twice the size of an average female. The converted warehouse was really the best place for someone like Esmeralda to live. I walked through the living room in the direction of where I thought the kitchen might be. It looked like any typical kitchen except that everything was made to fit a nine and half foot giantess. Custom made stainless steel appliances accented the white cabinets and checker-board floor. The kitchen was airy and full of light. It also looked like it should be on the cover of Better Homes and Garden magazine. Red checked curtains and blue counter tops enlivened the room even more. I noticed a couple of French doors on the other side of the white washed dinette set. Herbs hung from pegs on the wall and a stuffed witch hung from the ceiling. I found the stuffed witch to be the only odd thing in the whole kitchen. I was so busy inspecting the strange little object that I didn't notice the doors open.
"It means good luck," I heard Esmeralda's raspy voice say. "Scandinavian women hang a witch in their kitchens for good luck. It's a modern thing for me but supposedly they have been doing this for years now. I try to keep traditions of my people alive, no matter how silly. What was the emergency?"
I didn't want to beat around the bush but I needed to tell my kids first. "Where are Andy and Izzy?" I asked, fending off Esmeralda's question.
"We're here Mom," Andy said with a smile as Izzy followed him. "Esmeralda has been showing me how to swing a sword. Did you know she used to help the Vikings? She is so cool!" Andy said all excited about making friends with the frost giant/fairy. I didn't want to tell him. He looked so happy at that moment. My vision started to blur a bit. Whatever Mag did to me, it wasn't going to last.
"Your boy is a natural," Esmeralda said proudly. "He is like my Magni."
"He's a fast learner," I said and ruffled up Andy's hair.
"Is Daddy Joe okay?" Izzy asks. Despite Mag's magic, I could feel the tears just below the surface. Leave it to my girl to get to the point.
"No sweetie, he's not," I managed to say. Andy and Esmeralda's smiles faded while Izzy was her usual blank self. "Daddy Joe died peacefully in his sleep last night," I then said. Tears started to form in Andy's hazel eyes. He started to whimper like a dog as that strange glow formed around the rims of his irises. Whimpers and human cries tumbled out from him. I grabbed both him and Izzy into my embrace. Izzy didn't cry but she was well aware. She stood there stiffly in my embrace. Andy kept howling, one right after the other. My vision became a big blur as I started to break down, holding my kids.
Two large, strong, feminine arms encircled us. The crisp smell of cool air settled over us but Esmeralda's touch felt warm and normal instead of cold. I felt her chin on top of my head as she held us close. I turned to see that she was on her knees. "I am so sorry, Belinda. I'm sure your friend was a great warrior," Esmeralda said in a soothing voice as she held us in her tremendous embrace.